April 18, 2025
The Department of Defense’s Breakthrough Nuclear Moment Risks Slipping Away
The Department of Defense is on the verge of a breakthrough with advanced nuclear energy that promises to strengthen military readiness and revitalize a globally competitive U.S. commercial nuclear industry. But for that to happen, it needs to shelve the idea of a mobile microreactor that the military can bring on overseas deployments. Instead, the Department of Defense should prioritize fixed nuclear reactors at domestic U.S. military installations that will strengthen energy reliability for on-base critical missions and the surrounding defense communities that are essential to carrying out national defense.
Not since Adm. Hyman G. Rickover ushered in the era of Navy nuclear propulsion has the U.S. military been in a position to harness nuclear power to bolster U.S. energy dominance. And a breakthrough could not come sooner, as the electrical grid serving 99 percent of U.S. military installations faces surging demand from AI data centers and semiconductor chip manufacturing. Increasingly extreme weather is also causing outages that exceed on-base backup power capability. The nature of a globally networked force where domestic military installations are increasingly tied to overseas missions — from drones to cyber operations — means that a power failure at home puts operators abroad at risk. That cannot happen.
Unless they act, the Department of Defense’s breakthrough nuclear moment may vanish before it really happens.
Despite the need for more reliable electricity at U.S. military installations, the Department of Defense has focused considerable research and development on a mobile nuclear reactor. In 2019, the Strategic Capabilities Office launched the Project Pele demonstration reactor to serve the military’s operational energy needs. The idea sounds simple: use a nuclear reactor to generate electricity on the battlefield instead of hauling diesel fuel to power generators. It’s a worthy goal given that fuel lines are highly vulnerable to sabotage and attack.
Unfortunately, Project Pele is conceptually flawed as an energy solution for the modern and mobile U.S. military. Today’s servicemembers demand speed and agility — features that a mobile reactor cannot deliver. Because of the shielding required to protect people from radiation exposure, the Project Pele reactor takes three days to set up and seven days to take down. That is far too long for a forward-deployed force that may need to relocate swiftly — or is under fire — especially in a contested area. The National Academy of Sciences concluded the same in a 2021 study.
Read the full article on War on the Rocks.
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